Lyttle takes series silver

By his own admission, Wairarapa rider Scott Lyttle wasn't expecting anything special when he took part in the final event of the national cycling point series championship on home territory last weekend.
So nobody was more surprised than Lyttle himself when he placed second behind eventual series winner, Hawke's Bay's Jeremy Yates.
Third in a high quality line-up for the demanding 118km Rice Mountain Classic was 2010 Trust House Classic winner and Pure Black Racing team-mate of Lyttle, Michael Torckler from Okato.
Having just completed his second year of studying land surveying at Otago University, Lyttle had managed no more than about a month's serious training on Wairarapa roads and freely concedes to thinking he would more than likely finish among the also rans.
"Honestly, I thought a lack of fitness would catch me out and I would end up out the back somewhere," Lyttle said.
"I didn't really even have a game plan, I actually treated it more as a training ride than anything else. I just wanted to get some more miles in the legs."
As it happened, however, Lyttle felt comfortable enough to go with Yates, Torckler, Andy Hagan (Wellington) and Dion Smith (Auckland) in a breakaway group, with Yates, Lyttle and Torckler sorting themselves out heading into the 10km torturous finish up Admiral's Hill.
It was at the bottom of that climb that the very much in-form Yates launched his attack and he quickly established what was to be a winning lead of about 100m.
"He (Yates) was too strong, we just couldn't stick with him," Lyttle said. "But then again, we always knew he was the one to beat. He was hard and fit and the whole series was at stake. He wasn't going to be holding anything back."
"Very happy" with his second placing, Lyttle is now looking forward with even greater anticipation to the national road championships in Christchurch in early January and then the 2011 edition of the Trust House Classic which will, as usual, have some of its toughest stages in the Wairarapa.
In neither of those events does Lyttle see himself as a serious contender for the major spoils but with his fitness levels being considerably enhanced by an intensive training regime, he expects to at least be competitive.
The big objective, though, is to reach peak form by the time the powerful all-New Zealand Pure Black team heads overseas early next year to compete in places such as the United States and Asia.
For the 26-year-old Lyttle, having the opportunity to be part of Pure Black is a "dream come true" and it will mean putting his university studies on hold for at least two years.